In connection with a typical search engine, a user accessing same requests a search by entering a search string or the like that contains one or more search terms, perhaps with Boolean operators. In response, the search engine searches one or more databases based on the search string, generates a set of search results based thereon, and returns such search results to the requesting user, perhaps in the form of a page of information or of links to information that the user may review. In the latter case in particular, the user may access one or more of the links to review content relating to particular search results, and if content associated with one or more links of the search results is acceptable to the user, such user typically proceeds to employ such acceptable content in whatever manner is deemed appropriate.
However, it may instead be the case that the search results are not acceptable to the user in that none of the content thereof satisfies the requested search, at least from the point of view of such user. In such case, the user may decide to enter a new search string or a modification of the previously entered search string and review the search results from the search engine based on such new or modified search string. As should be appreciated, such process may iterate several times in the form of a search session until the user locates acceptable search results.
Generally, in a high-quality search engine, each query from a user as set forth in a search string should map accurately to search results that represent content that answers the query. Such goal is essential to providing a good searching experience, and in fact meeting such goal can represent the difference between a happy, satisfied user that will return to the search engine with a new search session and an angry, dissatisfied user that will instead visit another search engine.
However, such mapping of a search string to search results is currently performed, generally speaking, based on mapping protocols that employ each search term in a very literal sense and without any regard to anything other than a large indexing database. Thus, mapping of a search string does not take into consideration any external factors.
In particular, such mapping does not take into consideration that another user may have previously entered the same or a similar search string in connection with another overall search session, and then settled on some set of acceptable search results in connection with such another overall search session. As might be appreciated, with such knowledge, the search string from the user at issue might be responded to at least in part based on the acceptable search results from the another overall search session. Notably, although such acceptable search results from the another overall search session might not map directly to the search string at issue, there is evidence, at least anecdotally, that such acceptable search results from the another overall search session are in fact better suited to the search string from the user at issue based on such result having already satisfied the another user having entered the same or similar search string.
Accordingly, a need exists for a search engine and system that maps a search string to search results based at least in part on acceptable search results from another overall search session that included the same or a similar search string. More particularly, a need exists for a system and method that identifies such acceptable search results from the another overall search session and that clusters such acceptable search results with other acceptable search results based on the same or similar search string. Finally, a need exists for a system and method for reviewing such clustered search results and mapping a current search string to same.